1980년대 할리우드 영화에 나타난 가족: <위험한 정사> 페미니즘 시각으로 다시 읽기 (Family in the 1980s Hollywood Films: A Feminist Rereading of Fatal Attraction)

서지정보

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초록

The 1980s was a turning point in American history in that the rise of neoconservatism attempted to restore the terrain of the establishment which was lost to the challenges of civil rights movement, feminist movement, and counterculture movement in the previous decades. The so-called “backlash” trend was most conspicuous in the representation of women in mass media. The phenomenal success of Fatal Attraction and the heated response of the audience to the film reflect the suppressed anger of the conservatives who had been forced to relinquish their rights and status to women. Originally a moral tale about a man who commits adultery and pays the penalty, the screenplay had to be revised several times to cater to the taste of the producers who wanted to portray the single professional woman negatively. Consequently, the narrative structure and various cinematographic devices were tailored in order to delineate the Other woman who seduces the male character as a psychopath. In contrast, his wife is portrayed as an angel who devotes her time to such domestic duties as supporting her husband and taking care of their daughter. Therefore, this film turned out to be a morality play about a battle between the good woman and the bad woman.
This paper aims to employ “reading against the grain” strategy, drawing on Laura Mulvey’s theory on visual pleasure in narrative cinema. Mulvey suggests that there are two avenues of escape to disavow the castration threat which female sexuality poses in the movies. One of them is voyeurism which provides audience with the pleasure of “ascertaining guilt, asserting control, and subjecting the guilty person through punishment or forgiveness.” In Hollywood movies, the male characters as bearer of the look usually become an active agent who forwards the story and make things happen. In this film, however, it is Alex who initiates the affair and propels the story forward with her powerful gaze and desire. Even though she is shot to death by Beth, her challenge against the patriarchy and law of the father is strong enough to disturb the equilibrium of the status quo. Therefore, the happy ending which shows the recovery of the family is a false one because the voice of independent women cannot be silenced even after Alex’s death.

영어초록

The 1980s was a turning point in American history in that the rise of neoconservatism attempted to restore the terrain of the establishment which was lost to the challenges of civil rights movement, feminist movement, and counterculture movement in the previous decades. The so-called “backlash” trend was most conspicuous in the representation of women in mass media. The phenomenal success of Fatal Attraction and the heated response of the audience to the film reflect the suppressed anger of the conservatives who had been forced to relinquish their rights and status to women. Originally a moral tale about a man who commits adultery and pays the penalty, the screenplay had to be revised several times to cater to the taste of the producers who wanted to portray the single professional woman negatively. Consequently, the narrative structure and various cinematographic devices were tailored in order to delineate the Other woman who seduces the male character as a psychopath. In contrast, his wife is portrayed as an angel who devotes her time to such domestic duties as supporting her husband and taking care of their daughter. Therefore, this film turned out to be a morality play about a battle between the good woman and the bad woman.
This paper aims to employ “reading against the grain” strategy, drawing on Laura Mulvey’s theory on visual pleasure in narrative cinema. Mulvey suggests that there are two avenues of escape to disavow the castration threat which female sexuality poses in the movies. One of them is voyeurism which provides audience with the pleasure of “ascertaining guilt, asserting control, and subjecting the guilty person through punishment or forgiveness.” In Hollywood movies, the male characters as bearer of the look usually become an active agent who forwards the story and make things happen. In this film, however, it is Alex who initiates the affair and propels the story forward with her powerful gaze and desire. Even though she is shot to death by Beth, her challenge against the patriarchy and law of the father is strong enough to disturb the equilibrium of the status quo. Therefore, the happy ending which shows the recovery of the family is a false one because the voice of independent women cannot be silenced even after Alex’s death.

참고자료

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